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Ghajini movie review

December 25, 2008

Ghajini is a gripping and powerful movie, and draws you into the violent world of a man terribly wronged. It’s a movie that keeps you on the edge of your seat from the start and is replete with violence, even after three scenes were cut by the censor board…certainly not a pleasant ride for kids under the age of twelve despite the film getting an UA certificate! That said, Ghajini is a well directed film with brilliant music by A.R Rahman. The film begins by introducing us to Sanjay Singhania (Aamir Khan), a man suffering from anterograde amnesia, a condition which prevents him from remembering anything beyond 15 minutes…Ghajini is a typical Bollywood masala movie, with song and dance, a heart wringing romance and plenty of dishum dishum, but what will make this film memorable is Aamir’s performance.

This is the 5th review of Ghajini that I am reading since evening.
” It’s what one could call a guy flick. ” Except Amyth of Talkingtails, every guy has thrashed the movie and Aamir.
And though I like action movies I don’t like dark violent ones. There is a fine line of difference between action and violence. I tend to stay on the action side :)

This had too much of blood and gore, that was the downside. But overall I don’t mind dark violent movies. Ghajini though is skilfully made, the music is superb. – Nita.

I dont think the music was too good except one song .. may be I expected a little more, since it A R Rehman, and Aamir Khan ….. remember Rang De Basanti, Lagaan ?

I wasn’t just talking of the songs, but the background music. It was awesome! I found myself listening to it more than watching the action scenes! And do you remember the music when Aamir is alone in his flat, and disoriented? I just went fida over the music. That soundtrack is brilliant. Another movie with music I went mad over was Rock On. As for Rang De and Lagaan were different kind of films, this one was different. So was Taare. That is what I like about Aamir. His versatality. – Nita.

I read both your review and Amit’s. I liked both, almost more than the movie itself. All said, I enjoyed the movie, in spite of the script and story leaking like a Government source, and the rehashed crap that called itself a plot! I love Rahman’s music almost always, and in this case, as well.

That is what a movie’s prime purpose is, entertainment. I personally see movies for this purpose. I do not like seeing boring movies, however “arty” they are and I guess that makes me very plebian. :)

hmm…i will be watching this one for because ,i missed the climax of the tamil version…i will also be seeing memento:) as for Aamir’s acting,he is always good :)

Vishesh, so you are going out with a vengeance now that your exams are over! :) And btw, I read that the ending of the Tamil movie and this one is different! I wanted to put that in my review too, but could not get the information from a reliable site though I tried to cross check it. – Nita

For all those who claim to watch only the so called intelligent movies please stay away…and for the rest of us who want to be blown away by the sheer brilliance of Aamirs performance,Asins briliance and the screenplay and action of this superbly fun filled film..i’ve got just 3 words for you..Go watch immediatelyAamir matches surya scene to scene!

The film is a must watch. Things that leave a lasting impression on your mind are.

* The romance between Aamir and Asin
* The performance of aamir
* The screenplay which is super fast that you dont even notice that 3 hrs have gone.
* And finally the fact that you want kalpana to know that Sanjay is indeed a rich businessman before she dies ..wow!
* ITS NOT MEMENTO!!

So if you want to be enthralled for 3 hrs and sit at the edge of your seats..dont worry about what celebrity reviewers say..even though I beleive most will give good ratings for this movie..go and Enjoy!!

My vedict 4/5

Thanks Kamal. I agree that this movie is awesome in many ways! Its pure heady entertainment, the prime purpose of a movie and if a director can do that he is brilliant! About Memento, I too had heard that the way this movie is done is entirely different, just the storyline is taken. Whatever it is, this movie was a great roller coaster ride and I loved it. – Nita.

Hi Nita
I first read your blog exactly 1 year back, yes you got it right , it was TZP review.I was impressed now that I am not in India so just typed “nitawrite…..” on the URL to read Gazini’s review. A lot has changed since then. You blog has grown in stature. Being an Aamir khan fan I wd watch the movie sooner or later ( this country has no hindi releases ) but I was somewhat disappointed with the review. You are a writer of sublime quality but I felt that you were in a hurry to publish this. First you iterated the violence term many times ( around 8 times …makes it boring ) . Second you illustrated many facts which were known ti the junta before the release ( like remake of…, Aamir sufferinf from…, sensor board cuts …, Gazini game …) the point I am trying to make is when its a review let it be just a review. Trying to pour the pre-release information and common known facts makes the reading dull.

Giving facts is my weakness Ashutosh. You can say my weakness as a journalist. Let me assure you that it’s just the opposite of what you think – getting facts is a lot of hard work and is time consuming as one has to cross check all facts! I took hours to write this review. It’s very easy to pour out feelings, but as I wrote this review on payment for another site I had to take the trouble to ensure that it was comprehensive. However I do tend to have a different writing style than most other reviewers…I avoid writing the story which I think is very easy. And you can also see I wrote a lot of other stuff besides the facts. :) – nita.
p.s. Also as an Aamir fan you probably knew all this stuff. Others may not.

Hmm….I was really looking forward to this one, but I’m not so sure now if it’s going to be dark+violent. Dark I can take, but 3 hours of dark and violent without a couple coffee/email breaks…!

Thanks for the heads-up; I think I’ll wait for the DVD :))

On another note – doc or somebody mentioned this (even the Tamil one) is taken from a Hollywood one – do you know which one?

And on yet another note :) – I’m glad you put in some facts/storyline; makes me still want to see it. I hadn’t read about them elsewhere.

g

Thanks Gauri. Usually I avoid telling the story as I think it’s very easy to do so. But yes I usually try to put in as many facts about the movie as possible although it means taking a lot of trouble, basically doing research! :) But let me assure you that this movie is not 3 hours of dark violence. It’s got the coffee breaks in terms of the romance between Aamir Khan and Asin. In fact I would say at least an hour of it goes in this! But yeah, if you don’t like dark violent movies no point watching it in a cinema hall. – Nita.

Thanks for the review Nita :) Based on the other reviews as well, I would only catch this movie on a DVD. Definitely would try to get the soundtrack ASAP – an ardent fan of A.R Rahman’s compositions :D Happy hols!

I haven’t seen this yet… planning to watch it.. But I don’t know whether I will like it as much as tamil.. Asin’s character is very much refreshing in Tamil.. and Surya has also done a commendable job..
Songs are also very nice.. Yet to hear in Hindi version..
A good review Nita :)

Guys am from chennai..movie is far better than tamil.they hav edited some non logic scenes frm tamil.i watchd it in tamil.music and bgm is excellent for a comercial flick likd this.in tamil music n bgm is not as gud as hindi.only two songs,n that too only timely,didnt stood up to the test of time.kaise mujhe was mind blowing wid visual.as everyone said,violence was too much.but it is not like rbdj,usual formula film.i watchd in inox,stil am not able to come out of bgm ,music composed by A.r.Rahman.he rox thr’ot d movie.in tamil,surya did well,but in some scenes,he overeacted as he is a physco.but aamir performed so well knowing his charecter.in tamil some of the bgms were copied from michael jacksons entry music.as some people say rahmans music grows on you,but tis one not so sure,but kaise mujhe was awesome.comparing tamil and hindi..tamil-3/5,hindi-4/5..surya-3.5/5,aamir-4.5/5..music and bgm:tamil-3/5..hindi-4.5/5.asin,she did the same thing as in tamil.not bad..ok.go n watch it out for aamir and rahman.they deserve applause.dnt look for logic n plots.its a comercial entertainer,not a science experiment.even though..it has plots,its worth watching.hey arvind,watch the movie,then only the music n bgm wil make u understand,its better than tamil version.i still warmed by the music and performance of hindi,even after comin out of theater.chennai theatres runin ghajini are houseful,u dn beleive,1st class in black is rs.600,ghosh i watched for only 300 rupees..

No doubt that Gajini keeps you entertained with loads of comedy and action scenes which I like :)) but it made me gory with violence besides its a 3 hr movie:( Hindi version is definitely way better than Tamil/Telugu because it has aamir and superb technicians put their work together to make it look awesomely cool.

The movie ends really well unlike the earlier version. I LOVE comedy and I don’t care for the logic in the scenes as long as I m entertained. The screenplay is fast and cinematography is superb especially the one where aamir wakes up and displays his 20 pack..lol. I liked the sound design and it compliments very well with the Action sequences but very routine and I have seen plenty of em in Telugu movies :)

Viewers who categorize themselves as refined/polished/matured whatever it is please don’t go for this because from the beginning you would lost in thinkin about the logic behind each scene and end up straining your brain rather than take pleasure out of watchin it.

I hope my review helps those who are confused by mixed reviews like the one in Economic times :)

PS: I wish not to see neither Vivek Mittal’s justification in northies calling south indians as madrasis nor Vivek Kadpekar’s brutal replies :) I was kidding I really want to see that happen…lmaoooooooooooooo

Ghajini was the best movie of the year FOR SURE
it had drama, action, comedy and romace. the movie made me cry so its gatta be good.
amirs charater was so intersting and differnt from all the others he had preformed and did he look HOt or what, MAD hairstyle not to forget.
anyways long stroy short the movie was awsome, songs were great and amirs acting was awsome.
havnt seen the movie yet?? Then what are you waiting for, the movie did good business in holland as well, the movie was all booked out when it firt came out!

I dont quite agree. It was like watching a third grade terminator or robo-cop. Having seen Memento and original Gajini, I cannot digest aamir’s performance along with the fact that he is one of the finest actor.

From the first scene, where aamir had robotic movement. I felt, rather than trying to act as brilliantly as Surya and original memento actor, he was more interested in showing the rugged new look.

Even A.R Rehman had given him remix of his old hits. “Me yesa kyu hu ..” .. sounds familiar ??

I cant understand — why people like sharukh puthetic movies — typical cheap love stories — and leave alot of comment aamir movie — only man who gives holiday movie a status — His acting,, expression were great and off course 8 Pakksss — The comedy innocent part was also great — The movie dont let you to any where for three hours. — Great movia aamir — keep it up

This movie is just like another south Indian Movie. They are tend to exaggerate things. They may kill the gal in some decent manner but they never do. They cut the best scene of the movie as the gal never come to know that Aamir was actually Sanjay Singhania.. This is too much of a climax when director finally forget to open it. And last not the least, no matter how many people you have killed you can still runaway with normal life. But apart from all this Aamir was as brilliant as always and all the mistake is on director’s account.

why Aamir had to be cast in this mindless action film…Aamir is too intelligent to get into such films..watch lagaan.dil chahta hay,taray zameen par and you simply adore e him…but this time…
….badddddddddddddddddddd….

as far as voilence is concerned i think no movie was more voilent than zinda ….which was a remake as well…but it was a good one….

If you are expecting an intelligent psychological suspense thriller, watch Memento. If you are looking for an intense desi action masala watch the Tamil Ghajini. For the Hindi version doesn’t show much difference other than trimming the twin villain from the original into a single baddie. By now we are prone to digesting the exaggerated action in south cinema. It would still take some time to accept Aamir Khan doing the same. Rather, the question in first place is, would we ever want to accept Aamir in such avatar?

Saw this movie yesterday. Though there were a few questions – ‘how the hell he got off the bus which has exits only on the left?’ ‘Ghajini’s men or at least Ghajini dont even have a tiny pistol for protection?’ etc.. but then even Bourne movies have such logic defying scenes.

Wonder how so many people liked this movie. It is the worst movie done by Aamir – neither a real thriller nor a true love story – mashed up version of both. To be fair though, Aamir does look hot and he has tried hard for this one. But the direction is completely flawed with too many errors/false exaggerations (which business head drives around town with a motorcade and sends his senior management team to deal with an ad campaign??). The love story between Aamir and Asin also isn’t that convincing and stretched too long – the storyline should have stuck to the thriller aspect of it. Totally dissappointed with this movie – a sheer waste of Aamir’s potential.

The description of anterograde amnesia is wrong in this movie (as well as in your review). The patient actually retains all his/her memory before the incident, and is unable to store any new memories (albeit, for more than approximately 15 mintues or so) after the incident.

I finally saw Ghajini yesterday. I didnt really like the movie, mainly because of the violence. I dont think Asin is suited for Hindi movies. She has that typical south indian habit of overacting and over emoting which is so typical of south Indian movies

Don’t know how you liked the movie.Though as you rightly said its one’s personal choice.I am the only one amongst my family who found it boring to the core.I found the action too silly and the direction too southy if you know what I mean!!!
Well, I can enjoy melodramatic fantasy type movies! :) Actually I am not aware of what you mean by “southy” as I do not understand Tamil and the only Tamil film I have seen is “Sivaji” which I enjoyed even though I did not understand a word. But ofcourse not the kind of film one would remember for long. However the action in Ghajini was superb. The fights are never like seen in Indian cinema before…but as you mentioned, the kind of movies one likes is so personal! :) – Nita.

By the word southy I meant in the way the movie was directed.Usually South Indian movies have exaggerated stunts or action sequences .Though don’t get me wrong there are also very good South Indian movies that stand out. Its like Bollywood where only very few movies actually stand out whereas the others are just slapstick/skin flick/goofy movies that sadly become more popular than the true good movies.The latest being Golmaal Returns which I found to be the worst movie I ever saw in the year 2008.Yet it became a hit!!!!.I found it to be too silly!!!

Luckily I managed to escape Golmal. :) I think it became a hit because people went to see it because they liked the first Golmal. But those I met who had liked the first Golmal said they hated the second one! But about Ghajini, I must mention here that I thought that the action and fight sequences were realistic and well directed. That is one of the reasons I liked Ghajini and being an action movie fan I notice fight scenes very carefully. The actual choreography (if one can call it that) of the fight sequences was very good, more towards Hollywood style. But ofcourse the movie Ghajini itself was not at all realistic and quite ridiculous in parts, particularly the story. – Nita.

1. I ran into your blog about half an hour ago! I was delighted to find you.

2. I glanced around, read a few posts/pages. I liked them.

3. I ran into your Ghajini review and lo! It was from the sublime to the ridiculous! It is hard to concede that Ghajini is a good film; it is a very average film! You wrote like Nikhat Kazmi (TOI)! I was expecting a more nuanced observation from someone like you :(

4. I get this feeling that if you had not written for an external site (nowrunning.com), you would have written a more thoughtful review! I have not read any other movie review by you though.

6. I liked your blog, just the same and I have subscribed to it too. So, expect more reviews/comments from me.
Vikas, everyone has a different taste in movies, lol. I love action adventure movies, I love Aamir Khan as well! And I rarely write reviews “objectively,” whoever I write for. I give movies good ratings if I enjoy them. Simple. And thanks for your kind words about my blog and will surely check out yours. :) – Nita.
P.S. I have explained why I like movies in this post: https://nitawriter.wordpress.com/2009/01/02/best-movies-of-all-time-tag/

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